No evictions have taken place since Niagara Regional Housing first implemented its cease to qualify rule last summer, which requires tenants paying market rent to move.

A breakdown of the status of the 170 households impacted as a result of the change was provided to Niagara Region’s public health and social services committee Tuesday.

The decision to move market rent tenants out of affordable housing units was made to help alleviate the area’s lengthy waiting list.

Under the Housing Services Act, tenants who become ineligible for rent-geared-to-income (RGI) can stay and pay maximum rent, otherwise known as market rent, for 12 months. The rule had not previously been enforced by NRH.

The organization mailed out letters to 170 affected households explaining the change and providing a moving deadline.

Of the 170 letters sent out

, 65 households have since requalified for RGI, 40 have moved or given notice and 42 have an outcome that is still pending as staff reassess their eligibility.

In addition, four tenants were deemed overhoused and agreed to move to smaller units, two were deemed ineligible, six households were determined to be well over the maximum income levels allowed for affordable housing and accommodations were made for 11 households with extenuating circumstances, including tenants considered elderly or frail.

As of yet, no evictions have taken place and all impacted tenants have been in contact with housing.

“Our goal is to have the right people in our housing that really need it,” NRH chief executive officer Ellen Balmain said.

Housing’s waitlist, as of Dec. 31, sits at 4,636 households. That number is up four per cent over December 2014.

While he felt a more sensitive approach to the situation could have been taken, Fort Erie Mayor Wayne Redekop said NRH did what it is required to do.

“For every person in one of those units who ought not be there, there’s 10 families outside in need of that type of housing,” he said.

Welland Coun. George Marshall took issue with tenants who were unnecessarily occupying larger units, or misreporting information that would keep them from qualifying for affordable housing.

“It’s not a birthright to get into these housing units,” he said.

At the same time, he felt concern for seniors who were being asked to move from units in which some have lived for more than 30 years.

He questioned why regional council’s requested moratorium, which came forward in October and would have put a stay on evictions until June 30, 2016, was not approved by the housing board.

The board, Balmain said, felt “putting a moratorium on this at this point was not necessary” due to the timeline required by the eviction process.

Because evictions can and often do go through the Landlord and Tenant Board, it can take several weeks or even months to come to a resolution, she said.

A series of notices, and time between each, is required before a board hearing, which also takes time to schedule, can be requested.

The earliest anyone could potentially be evicted from the impacted group is May 2016, Balmain said.

While the board was aware of the timeline required by the eviction process, that offered no assurance to impacted tenants to help lessen their anxieties, Marshall said.

Monthly updates on the cease to qualify initiative will be provided to council going forward.maryanne.firth@sunmedia.ca